Solid deicers, such as rock salt (sodium chloride) and abrasives, such as sand, are commonly applied to roads and other surfaces during winter months. These solid deicers and abrasives are often pre-wetted before being stored or applied. Pre-wetting involves addition of a liquid to the solid deicer or abrasive in order to give it increased resistance to freezing, improved storage characteristics, flowability, and deicing performance. Brines of sodium chloride, calcium chloride, and magnesium chloride are often used for this purpose. Unfortunately, these chloride based materials have a tendency to accelerate corrosion of automobiles, maintenance equipment, and infrastructure. Therefore, a need exists for an improved deicer composition that is less corrosive, including a deicer composition that can be used alone or can be added to solid deicers as a pre-wetting agent.